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Symbolism In Lord Of The Flies

Decent Essays

Symbolism Literary Analysis
As Leo Tolstoy once said, “Wrong does not cease to be wrong just because the majority share in it.” This is exactly what happened while the boys were attempting to survive on the island. As some became savage-like, nobody had the individual thought to defy them. They all became sucked into the tribe of barbarism. This is the theme that Golding portrays: as one wanders away from what is undisputably good, their attitude about what is right and what is wrong will falter and fade. Symbolism is the most prevalent literary element in developing this theme in William Golding’s Lord of the Flies.
First, there are some examples of symbolism regarding the boys’ attempt to retain civilization as they continue their survival on the island. One of these examples is the length of their hair. As each of the boys survives on the island and loses their innocence, their hair grows to an uncomfortable length; except Piggy. “[Piggy] was the only boy on the island whose hair never seemed to grow” (Golding 64). Piggy’s attempts to retain his sanity and manners are not in vain, he remains as unchanged as his hair. Their hair reflects the boys’ attitude on the island as they become less mature and more barbaric. Eventually, each boy starts to discard any sort of manners, rules, or just general peacekeeping ideas; that they most definitely learned growing up in arguably the most civilized country in the world: Great Britain. This demonstrates immense symbolism, as well

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